273 Cam Shaft Wear?

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SheSaid

SheSaid

Mopar/Jeep Guy
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Hello all,

Currently restoring my mom's 1969 Dodge Dart GT Convertible, the restoration is progressing here. The car has the original, numbers matching 273 with 2 barrel Carter BBD.

Pulled the Cam shaft and examined for wear, the lobes all seem to be good and "lobey" although cannot measure them. (tool for the job is too small)

I did notice wear on the edges of the cam lobes, the worst of it is pictured.

Is this is an issue? Or just normal wear? Should I replace the Cam? If so, where could I find a stock replacement?

The cornerstones of this build are drivability and reliability (snore) so I do not want a "performance" cam, would prefer an exact replacement. Note this is not the Hi-po 273 from 65-67.

Any help would be appreciated, thanks!
 

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well you already have it out ,i personally would not put it back in and instead go with a mild mopar purpleshaft magnum grind cam/lifters and a new chain at the very least.check out mopar performance through summit,they have a good selection and kits for a good price..imo
 
As long as you put the lifters back where they were, that normal wear. Move the lifters? replace.
 
that looks fine, lobes are ground with a slope so the lifters can rotate. that is good condition for being 45 years old.
 
I put the tappets in labeled egg carton 1I 1E, 2I 2E... ect.

I will reuse the cam.

But still... to find a replacement cam I still cant find one with the stock grind. Per allpar.com it should be Lift 373/400 Duration 240/248. Have not found those numbers online anywhere, custom grind I guess?
 
hi, don't reuse that wore out cam!!! it will fail soon. edges of lobe show fractures and will fail. parts houses, can usually get you a stock cam for replacement.engine pro offers a cam MC 645. same for 318 and 273.just food for thought.
 
Call Tim@ Bullet cams. He likely has something that would work great. The only shelf grind I can think of is the Comp 252 high energy hyd. I think you would be fine with that as well.
 
I investigated getting my 65 2-barrel 273 cam reground to the factory HP profile (4-barrel). One place could do it (Oregon Cam, I recall) since they had the blank, cost ~$80 + shipping both ways. I switched to a 4-barrel intake. I ended up installing a hydraulic cam and Rhoads lifters. I installed the common "RV torquer" which is slightly more lift than the 273 HP solid cam (0.422"/0.444" I recall).
 
You won't have to do it over again if you replace it now. The photo of the old cam doesn't look too good. If you reuse it may last a lifetime but....................
Almost every cam manufacturer has stocker cams for small blocks. You can get one at NAPA if you wish. Get a cam/lifter/ timing set combo and you'll be good.
 
So I found 2 camshafts made by Melling

SPD-20 (stock replacment)
- 372/399 valve lift 180/192 duration @.050 110/108 degree lobe separation

and

MTD-1 (RV Torquer)
- 420/443 valve lift 270/280 advertised duration 204/214 duration @.050 112 degree lobe separation

"I installed the common "RV torquer" which is slightly more lift than the 273 HP solid cam (0.422"/0.444" I recall)." How did you like the RV cam in your 273?

I want to keep the 2 barrel BBD since it is the orginal carb. The big question is, would the RV cam kill this little 273? Or will it be the same motor we loved before with a little more getty-up around town?
 
I used Camcraft to grind a cam for me. He can grind any spec you give hime or tell him what kind of driving you do and let him do his thing. My cam works great and he sent new lifters for under $200.
 
It doesn't look the greatest to me and if I were rebuilding the engine I'd would replace it. As for what to use I think you'll be ok with the larger of the 2 you listed but you would probably be better off with a XE252 comp cam. It's about the same size as the MTD-1 you listed but the lift profile is a little more aggressive (ramps up faster) so it'll make more torque and that's what you want with a small cubic inch engine. Here's a link to it on Summit's website so you can look at the specs

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CCA-20-302-4/
 
SheSaid said:
So I found 2 camshafts made by Melling
...
MTD-1 (RV Torquer)
- 420/443 valve lift 270/280 advertised duration 204/214 duration @.050 112 degree lobe separation

I want to keep the 2 barrel BBD since it is the orginal carb. The big question is, would the RV cam kill this little 273? Or will it be the same motor we loved before with a little more getty-up around town?
Click to expand...

That looks almost like a 340 cam. A bit big for a 2 barrel carb.
 
If you have dual exhaust I think you would be fine with the bigger cam and the 2bbl. The 74 318 roadrunner motors used 340 cams with the little 2BBL.
 
Hey thanks for all the great advice everyone!

We are going with the RV cam, although I liked that Comp Cam also.

The motor is getting a Pertronix Ignitor II and coil, as well as a K&N Filter, and 2.5 dual exhaust with H pipe. Hopefully this will match well with the cam and have a little more pull while cruising around.

Thank again FABO!
 
I can only say great things about the Isky E-4 cam. Close in spec to the commando 273 or so I've heard.
As far as performance vs stock, this cam is better in every regard vs. the 2-bbl 273 cam it replaced.
But I have a good 2-bbl 273 cam for free if you would want it
 

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SheSaid said:
We are going with the RV cam
Click to expand...

I assume you noticed that cam is for hydraulic lifters (if same as mine). If so, you will need hydraulic lifters and shorter pushrods. Many FABO guys will recommend staying with solid lifters (and matching cam), and swear that adjusting valves every 10,000 miles is minimal inconvenience. I had a slant six and hated that. If you don't mind that, you can't be 65TerrorCuda's "free cam" offer.

My Rhoads lifters will sound like solids (sewing machine ticking", but never need adjustment. Can't tell you how I like it since I haven't run the engine yet. In fact, I have only worked 2 hrs on the Dart in the last 2 weeks.
 
BillGrissom said:
I assume you noticed that cam is for hydraulic lifters (if same as mine). If so, you will need hydraulic lifters and shorter pushrods. Many FABO guys will recommend staying with solid lifters (and matching cam), and swear that adjusting valves every 10,000 miles is minimal inconvenience. I had a slant six and hated that. If you don't mind that, you can't be 65TerrorCuda's "free cam" offer.

My Rhoads lifters will sound like solids (sewing machine ticking", but never need adjustment. Can't tell you how I like it since I haven't run the engine yet. In fact, I have only worked 2 hrs on the Dart in the last 2 weeks.
Click to expand...

Bill only the early 273's were solid lifter engines. The OP's is a 69 which is hydraulic.
 
fishy68 said:
Bill only the early 273's were solid lifter engines. The OP's is a 69 which is hydraulic.
Click to expand...
Yeah it’s a hydraulic motor to start with. 69 was the last year of the 273 so it is kind of one foot in the past and one in the future. More like a 318 than an old Commando style 273. But is a numbers matching block, heads, distributor, and carb. Nice.

The motor should do what is needed though. It’s going back in a Convertible so 1. Sound nice 2. Easy to drive 3. ok gas mileage.
 
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